


love, you're not alone, 'cause i'm gonna stand by you

by JaeRianL



Series: agents of fluff 2020 [10]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Adorable Leo Fitz, Cuddling & Snuggling, Families of Choice, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff, Forehead Kisses, Gen, Hair Braiding, Mother-Son Relationship, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:21:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27646754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JaeRianL/pseuds/JaeRianL
Summary: Fitz has to be the worst equipped person to look after May when she’s ill, but someone has to do it, and he can’t just leave her in the hands of random agents.
Relationships: Leo Fitz & Melinda May
Series: agents of fluff 2020 [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2020175
Comments: 10
Kudos: 38
Collections: Agents of Fluff 2020





	love, you're not alone, 'cause i'm gonna stand by you

**Author's Note:**

> This crosses off the squares Any Gen (Fitz & May) & Forehead Kisses on the fluff bingo cards!

Fitz couldn’t be entirely sure that he hadn’t hallucinated hearing his lab techs discussing a zombie like Melinda May wandering the halls of the base. But when he decides to check up on the older woman, knowing that most of the team had gone out on a mission earlier this morning, he can’t fault the technicians for their description. To put it nicely, she looks like death warmed over, and while he would never willingly admit thinking that, it’s the only thing that goes through his mind when he sees her. Messaging his most competent lab technician, letting her know that she’s in charge and to not, under any circumstances, let Jacobson anywhere near his work, Fitz makes the executive decision that he will have to be the one to take care of May. 

When he “coincidentally” stumbles across her in the corridor, the shorter woman seconds from keeling over, Fitz rushes over to hold her upright. He takes most of her weight as he navigates through the base, avoiding the medbay the moment she gives him a look, silently daring him to take her there and see what would happen. As they make their way down to the bunks, Fitz can’t help but be thankful that since his days at the Academy, he’s become a much tidier individual. With little protest, he helps May get comfortable on the bed before heading over to his drawers, pulling out an old t-shirt and some joggers that she could wear instead of her usual leather getup.

Backing out of the room, he gives May her privacy while she changes, making a mental list of all the things he’ll need while she stays in his room for the meantime. He hears her call out, her voice hoarse and sore, and Fitz heads back into his room, wincing as May lets out a series of harsh coughs that wrack her slight frame. Grabbing the paper bin stashed under his desk, he passes it over to the older woman, busying himself with fixing her a glass of water and a Lemsip, as well as scouring his snack drawers for some plain crackers. When she’s stopped hacking her lungs up, Fitz walks back over, laden down with everything she could need.

“Do you want me to put your hair up for you?” He asks, noticing the sweat slick strands sticking to her forehead.

She nods gently, wincing at the movement, and Fitz’s heart hurts to see this woman who had become like another mother to him hurt in this way, with him powerless to stop it. He perches on the edge of his bed and gently runs his fingers through her long black hair, doing his utmost best to keep her head as still as possible, before plaiting it, tying it off with one of the hair bands he keeps on his wrist for the long-haired scientists in the lab who inevitably forget to bring them. When he stands up, he urges May to try and have a drink of something, and eat a couple crackers, not wanting her to have to later vomit up just bile. 

After he manages to coax her into consuming something, he watches her eyes droop, the older woman forcing herself to stay awake for reasons Fitz can only suspect. He waits for another fifteen minutes, but when she’s still forcefully awake, Fitz decides he might as well try to convince her to go to sleep. Waiting for her permission, he sits beside her on the bed, offering her one of his softest blankets to curl up under while he sits patiently.

“You’re safe to fall asleep May, I can stay if you want, and if you don’t, I can leave you be.”

She mulls over her options, thankful that he was willing to leave her if she asked, but in the end, she lets him stay. When she fails to fall asleep in the silence of his room, Fitz decides to try out what his mum had done for him when he was younger, and he starts to sing some of the Gaelic lullabies from his childhood. His pronunciation is by no means perfect, he can’t fully remember all of the words, but it soon does the trick, and May slowly drifts off to sleep, her pinky linked with Fitz’s grounding her where Coulson’s touch is missing. 

Staring down at the older woman, her face slack as she dreams about goodness knows what, Fitz can’t force himself to leave her alone, leave her vulnerable. He brushes away one of the loose strands of hair on her forehead, pushing it away from her eyes, before pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.

“Sleep tight Mum,” he whispers, “I’ll keep you safe.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you all enjoyed! Let me know what you thought & come find me on [ Tumblr](https://acetoshikosato.tumblr.com/)! Thanks for reading!!
> 
> Jae <3


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